How To Rent Welding Equipment

Welding equipment is one of the most important categories of machinery in the construction, shipbuilding and manufacturing industries. The equipment is used to join metals or thermoplastics. The type of welding machine depends on the energy source it uses to operate such as gas, electric arc, laser, electron beam, friction and ultrasound. For construction firms, ship building companies and manufacturing companies, it is necessary to acquire this equipment to accomplish their work. For these kinds of companies, continuous work means good business and therefore necessary equipment should always be ready for use. For hobby enthusiast though or those just starting up a small business that needs this type of equipment, it would be more practical to rent the equipment.

There are three factors to be considered when renting welding equipment: utilization rate, volume and technology requirement. If you will be utilizing your welding equipment less than 60 to 70 percent of the time, you should consider renting instead of buying the equipment. If your company has an additional volume of work just for a period of time, like working on a scheduled shut down, renting is the best option rather than incurring an additional capital expense to purchase additional equipment to meet the demand. Technology requirements are also a determinant factor when deciding to buy or rent welding equipment. The availability of the latest welding technology that would result in work efficiency when renting, would be more cost effective than purchasing it. Other factors such as depreciation, rental rate, maintenance cost, transportation and storage cost also influence the decision to rent such equipment.

Rental companies and welding distributors want business and normally offer rental of equipment, rent-to-own, outright purchase or sometimes lease options. The need to increase productivity and efficiency has to be considered when deciding to purchase or rent welding equipment. Outsourcing welding equipment, on the other hand, would cause the rental fee to be charged directly to the project and treated as a job cost. The "lost" profit due to renting the equipment would not be felt if the value of the equipment rental were very low compared to the total project cost. Owning a large fleet of welders requires storage space, which in turn will have an additional cost for building ownership, while with a rental firm, the equipment will no longer be your responsibility once you're done with it.

A construction company's decision to own or rent equipment would always boil down to a cost analysis. Most would choose to purchase gas engine drives and rent additional diesel engines or multiple arc welders to augment a smaller core fleet. Investing the capital in good welding equipment and renting expensive units would be a wise decision to make. Renting equipment also adds to tax incentives. The company would not incur property taxes or licensing fees, and rental fees could always be charged as a business expense.

Managing a welding equipment rental business on the other hand would be very profitable. With the present trends in the construction industry, working closely with welding manufacturers and making it big is a sure hit.